Ghanaian new media startup OMG Digital has raised $1.1 million in seed funding that will be used to help fulfill their growing reputation as the ‘BuzzFeed of Africa’. OMG Voice, the primary website run by the group, currently operates with versions in Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya, and the new investment will go towards expanding the footprint of the brand to additional African territories. Known as the ‘BuzzFeed of Africa’ due to the company’s focus on creating content for millennials, the tech startup creates and curates listicles, pictorials, videos and memes with an African audience in mind, according to Techpoint.

The $1.1 million in seed funding was raised via international investors in the form of Kima Ventures, Soma Capital, Comcast Ventures Catalyst Fund, Social Capital, M&Y Growth Partners, and Macro Venture and a number of other angel investors. The Y-Combinator backed company was co-founded by Ghanaians Jesse Arhin Ghansah, Prince Boakye Boampong, and Dominic Mensah in February 2016, and has already gone on to attract 4.5 million unique users per month for OMG Voice, according to Jbklutse.

Funding to expand the BuzzFeed of Africa

While OMG Digital is already staffed by a comprehensive team of 25 employees within Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya, plans are in place for further expansion, which will be made possible through the investment. The next countries that will see sites launched include South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Tanzania. Along with the expansion, the seed capital will be used to grow its advertising and marketing departments, while producing more video content, according to TechCrunch. The OMG Digital co-founders decided to set up the company when they found that online content available to them was boring, and when it finally catered to their age group, it was not culturally relevant to them in Ghana.

They thought that the same must be true elsewhere in Africa, and the new media company was born with a motivation to eventually be present in all African countries. Immediate expansion plans target English-speaking nations in Africa, with moves into Francophone and Lusophone countries following at a later stage. Much like BuzzFeed, OMG Digital monetizes through digital marketing, but they have also enjoyed successful advertising campaigns with major brands. OMG Digital has already partnered with Coca Cola, Huawei, KFC, Philips, Pringles, and several of Africa’s largest telecoms, including MTN, on marketing campaigns and sponsored content, according to TechCrunch.